KABUL — Afghanistan expects to hold direct talks with the Taliban by the end of this month, an official said Sunday.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmad Shakib Mostaghani said Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, and the United States agreed on a roadmap toward peace talks at a meeting in Islamabad the day before.

The last direct talks between Kabul and the Taliban broke down after just one session last summer when Kabul announced that the Taliban’s reclusive, longtime leader Mullah Mohammad Omar died two years earlier.

The next four-country meeting is scheduled for Feb. 23 in Kabul. The Taliban are not taking part in those negotiations, which aim to lay the groundwork for peace talks.

The Afghan government has long accused Pakistan of granting the insurgents safe haven across the porous border, charges denied by Islamabad. But Pakistan is widely believed to have influence over the Taliban and is seen as a key player in any peace efforts.

Afghan forces have struggled to hold off the Taliban since the United States and NATO officially ended the combat mission at the end of 2014.

Associated Press